An Important disclaimer! The information provided on this page is not legal advice. Transmission of this information is not intended to create, and receipt by you does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. Readers must not act upon any information without first seeking advice from a qualified attorney.

The J visa category allows a “bona fide student, scholar, trainee, teacher, professor,
research assistant, specialist or leader in a field of specialized knowledge or skill” to
come to the United States temporarily to teach, instruct, lecture, observe, conduct
research, consult, demonstrate special skills or receive training under a designated
program. INA 101(a)(15)(J). J-1 programs such as the Justice and Journalism program
announced in the Federal Register by the ECA contribute to the growth of a global
culture by allowing people to come here temporarily and gain knowledge which they will
then take back and share with others in their home country.
Specifically, the goal of the program is to train the media members who will influence
the decision makers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi,
Uganda and Zimbabwe in American ideals of professionalism in the media--i.e. “gaining
an appreciation of and skill for objective reporting; developing subject specialization
(e.g. justice/legal issues); giving fair coverage to positive as well as
negative news; separating comment from news coverage; avoiding
inflammatory presentations; maintaining independence from special interests; etc.”
While these goals sound laudable, and are ones we support, we must keep in mind that
simply because people operate with a different set of values and expectations, they
are not automatically wrong. The J-1 allows someone to come here to gain or impart
knowledge. It should be used for an exchange of knowledge, not a means of cultural
export.

In re S. V. Int. Dec.
3430 (BIA May 9, 2000) [you need Acrobat Reader to read
this pdf file]
The Board of Immigration Appeals holds that for purposes of Article 3 protection the applicant must establish that the torture feared would be inflicted by or with the acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. The protection does not extend to those who fear entities the government is unable to control.

The Prevailing Wage-A
Disservice to US Workers
As part of his "As I See It" column Gary Endelman, Esq., argues that defining "prevailing wage" solely with reference to wages paid in the US instead of global wages is a disservice to US workers.

Alan
Dershowitz on Elian Gonzalez
In an interview with the National Review Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz criticizes
the INS raid and explains why Congress should hold hearings on the matter, but will not.

Some Asylum Seekers Encounter a Catch-22
The San Francisco Chronicle focuses on the plight of asylum seekers who obtain false passports in order to flee the government they fear being charged with using fraudulent documents.

Would you be interested in providing us with testimonials?
ILW.com is compiling a section of testimonials. We are looking for individuals who found
our Web site valuable and would like it to be publicly known. You may be a prospective
immigrant, law practitioner, immigration worker, lawmaker, law student. Please respond
to webmaster@ilw.com.

FBI Fingerprint Checks
When the FBI fingerprint check is done for a green card, what happens if you have been
questioned by the police, but not arrested or charged? See the thread on our Discussion
Board.

An Indian Reader's view of
Elian and Microsoft
Sameer Kumar writing from Bombay argues that the government's handling of the Elian
Gonzalez matter and the Microsoft anti-trust case send the wrong message about the United
States to potential immigrants.

We encourage correspondence on any immigration related matters and comments
on the ILW.COM site. Send letters to editor@ilw.com.
Letters may be edited for clarity, legal and space considerations, and may be published and otherwise used
in any medium.